disciples, I have chosen you twelve, but one of you is a devil. And
again, Verily I say unto you, one of you this night shall betray
me, and he it is unto whomsoever I shall give a sop: then giving
a sop unto Judas, he said unto him what thou dost do quickly.
With the sop the devil entered into Judas, and he went out from
amongst them.--Judas then went to the chief priests, and received
the thirty pieces of silver; so taking with him an armed band
of men, to apprehend his master, He led them to the Garden, of
Gethsemane where Jesus was wont to retire for his devotion; he went
telling them, that whomsoever he should kiss, the same was he,
hold him fast. There our Lord beheld his adversaries coming with
burning torches and lanterns, and weapons to apprehend him; then
spake he to his disciples, and said, “_Rise let us go; behold he
is at hand that will betray me._” And while he was speaking, came
Judas the traitor, saying, Hail, Master, and kissed him. For it
is written, that it was the manner and custom of our Lord Jesus
towards his disciples, that when at any time he had sent them out,
at their return again, he would receive them with a loving kiss.
Then they laid hands on the Lord, and bound him as a thief and
a murderer, and led him away to the high Priest and Elders, who
asked him many questions; to which our Lord gave them no answer,
but stood like a lamb dumb before his shearers. And here let us
behold our Lord Jesus, how patiently and meekly he receives that
false and treacherous kiss from that unfaithful disciple, whose
feet he had vouchsafed to wash with his own hands, and whom out of
his unspeakable charity he refused not to feed with the precious
food of his blessed body. Consider likewise how meekly he suffered
himself to be taken, bound, struck, and furiously dragged away,
as if he had been a thief, or the most wicked person in the
world, void of power to help himself. Contemplate also the great
sorrow and inward affliction he had of his disciples, who fled
and left him in the hands of those ravenous wolves. And on the
other side, consider the grief of their hearts, since the cause of
their leaving him was not the perversity of their will, but the
frailty of their weak nature: for which they heartily mourn and
sigh, like poor orphans that know not what they do, or whither
to go; and their sorrow was so much the greater, as they knew in
what villanous manner their Lord and master would be treated and
abused. Nevertheless, the whole assembly, though they found nothing
worthy of death in him, one by one passed the following sentences
on him.
JERUSALEM’S
BLACK TRIBUNAL;
OR THE
BLOODY SENTENCE OF THE JEWS,
AGAINST
OUR BLESSED LORD AND SAVIOUR,
JESUS CHRIST.
CAIPHAS.
Better one man should die, than all perish.
JEHOSOPHAT.
Let him be bound, and kept fast in chains.
RAPHAR.
Let us put him to death.
FAREAS.
Let us banish him, or he will destroy our country.
DIARRHIAS.
He is worthy of death, because he seduceth the people.
RABINTH.
Guilty or not, let the seducer die.
LESSA.
Let us banish him for ever.
CHIERIES.
If he be innocent he shall die, because he stirreth up the people.
PTOLEMEUS.
Guilty or not guilty, let us sentence him to death or punishment.
TERAS.
Either banish him, or send him unto Cæsar.
LEMECH.
Punish him with death.
POTIPHARES.
Let him be banished for seducing the people.
The mob also cried out to Pontius Pilate, if you let this man go,
you are not Cæsar’s friend; therefore, crucify him! crucify him!
THE
SENTENCE OF DEATH
PASSED ON
JESUS CHRIST
BY
PONTIUS PILATE.
I PONTIUS PILATE, Judge in Jerusalem under the most potent
Tiberius, happy and prosperous be his reign, having heard and known
the accusation of JESUS OF NAZARETH, whom the Jews brought bound,
to pronounce his sentence; seeing he, by presumptuous expressions,
called himself the SON of GOD and the KING of the JEWS, and said he
would destroy the TEMPLE of Solomon. Let him be condemned to the
cross with the two Thieves.
Thus was the Lord of Life condemn’d,
On Calv’ry’s mount to die,
As Moses’ Serpent so was he
There lifted up on high.
’Twas not for sins that were his own,
He there shed forth his blood,
But that such sinners vile as we,
Might be brought near to God.
Let us obey the gospel call,
Now while it is to-day,
Lest ere to-morrow Death should cry,
To judgment come away.
MISERABLE AND AWFUL END OF THE TRAITOR JUDAS.
Now Judas, the Traitor, had no sooner seen his master condemned by
the Jewish council, than his conscience upbraided him; he brought
back the thirty pieces of silver, and confessed he had betrayed his
innocent master. But the Jewish rulers replied, that that was none
of their business, he might blame himself. And he threw back the
thirty pieces of silver and went out and hanged himself; but the
rope breaking, or the tree giving way, he fell and his body burst
asunder, and his bowels gushed out. Then the Jews, as they thought
the price of blood was not fit for the Treasury, they, as agents
for Judas, gave it for the Potters-field to bury strangers in.
Tho’ Judas ’mongst the Apostles was
And with them took his part,
His awful end proved him to be
A traitor in his heart.
On the Evening after our Lord’s resurrection he appeared unto ten
of the apostles, Judas being dead, and Thomas absent: he renewed
their mission, and breathed on them, as a token of his sending the
Holy Ghost. After giving them repeated proofs of his resurrection,
he just before his ascension gave them a formal commission, saying,
“_Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptising them in the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; Teaching
them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and,
lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen._”
After they had witnessed their master’s departure to the heavenly
mansions, Peter proposed, that one who had been a constant witness
of his marvellous sufferings and conduct, should be chosen to fill
the room of Judas. The disciples chose Barsabas and Matthias for
the candidates. As the office was extraordinary, and perhaps the
votes equal, the final determination, which of the two should be
the apostle, was left to the decision of God by the lot. After
prayer, the lots were cast, and it fell upon Matthias: he was
therefore numbered with the eleven apostles.
On the day of Pentecost, a feast appointed to commemorate the
giving of the law, the Holy Ghost, in the shape of cloven tongues
of fire, descended on each of them; rendered them bold and
infallible in preaching the gospel; qualified them with power, to
speak in every language, to discern men’s tempers, and to confer
the miraculous influence of speaking with tongues on others, by the
laying on of hands.
Learn hence a lot’s a sacred thing,
Let’s not it vanity use,
Since God thereby has oft thought fit,
To choose and to refuse.
Let’s be content with what’s our lot,
Since God to us it gave,
Let’s pray that Christ may be the gift,
Greater can’t sinners have.
Correspondent to the twelve patriarchs, or twelve tribes of Israel,
our Saviour, in the second or third year of his public ministry,
first appointed, and then sent forth twelve of his followers, whom
he named Apostles. These he sent out by two’s,
SIMON PETER, and ANDREW his brother;
JAMES the son of ZEBEDEE, and JOHN his brother;
PHILIP, and BARTHOLOMEW;
THOMAS, and MATTHEW;
JAMES the son of ALPHEUS, and JUDE his brother;
SIMON the Canaanite, and JUDAS ISCARIOT;
MATTHIAS, succeeded Judas after the resurrection of our Lord.
ASCENSION
OF
OUR LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST.
Touching the wonderful ascension of our Lord Jesus, it behoves
thee, pious reader, to awaken thy heart, and render thyself with
more than ordinarly attention to all that is here said or done,
relating to this subject, if thou desire to feed thy soul with
heavenly comfort, and reap the spiritual unction, which plentifully
flows from the devout contemplation of so divine a subject.
On the fortieth day after the resurrection, our Lord Jesus, knowing
that his time was now come to depart from this world, and to pass
hence to his Father, taking with him the holy patriarchs, prophets,
and others, who after his resurrection were in the terrestrial
paradise, and blessing Enoch and Elias, who remained there still
alive, he came, to his apostles, who were gathered together on
Mount Sion, which was the place where he made his last supper the
night before his passion. There were likewise with the apostles at
this place, the blessed Virgin, and many other disciples; and our
Lord appearing to them said, that he would eat with them before he
departed from them, as a special token and memorial of the love
he bore them. And as they were all eating, being full of joy and
spiritual comfort at this last refection of our Lord Jesus, he said
to them, “The time is now come in which I must return again to him
that sent me: but you shall remain in the city till you are clothed
with the virtue descending from above; for within a few days you
shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, as I before promised you.
After which, you shall be dispersed throughout the whole world, to
preach my gospel, baptizing all that shall believe in me, so that
you shall be my witnesses to the utmost confines of the earth.”
He likewise reproved them for their incredulity in not believing
them who had seen him rise, that is the angels. This he chose to
do at the time he was speaking to them of preaching his gospel,
to give them to understand, that they ought to have believed the
angels, even before they saw him, much sooner than they ought to be
believed by those to whom they were to preach, who, nevertheless,
would believe them (the apostles) though they should not see him,
(Jesus Christ.) And this he did, that by knowing their fault
they might remain humble; shewing them at his departure how much
he admired that virtue, and that he recommended it to them in a
singular manner. They asked him concerning many things that were
to come to pass; but he would not resolve them, inasmuch as it was
not necessary for them to know the secrets of God, which his father
had reserved in his own power, to fulfill at his own will and
pleasure. And thus they continued discoursing and eating together,
with great comfort and satisfaction, occasioned by the presence of
their Lord; yet their comfort was mixed with some grief, by reason
of his departure from them. For they loved him so tenderly, that
they could not hear him speak of leaving them without heaviness and
sorrow.
And what can we think of his blessed Mother? May we not devoutly
imagine that, sitting near him, and hearing what he said concerning
his departure, she was moved with the tenderness of her motherly
affection; and that overcome with grief, which suddenly seized,
and oppressed her blessed soul, she inclined her head towards him,
and rested it upon his sacred breast! For, if John the Evangelist
at the last supper, took this freedom, with much more reason may
we suppose her to do the same on this doleful occasion. Hence,
then, with tears, and many sighs, she spoke to him in this manner:
“Oh my beloved son, I beseech thee not to leave me; but if thou
must depart, and return again to thy heavenly Father, take me,
thy afflicted Mother, along with thee!” But our blessed Lord
endeavoured to comfort her, and said, “Grieve not, oh beloved
parent, at my leaving you because I go to my Father; and it is
expedient that you remain here a short time longer, to confirm
in their faith, such as shall be converted, and believe in me,
and afterwards I will come again, and take you with me, to be a
partaker of my glory.” To whom again, our Lady replied, “My beloved
Son, may thy will always be fulfilled in all things, for I am
not only contented to remain here during thy pleasure, but also,
to suffer death for love of those souls, for which thou hast so
willingly vouchsafed to lay down thy life: this, however, I beseech
thee, be thou ever mindful of me.” Our Lord then again comforted
her, with the disciples, and Mary Magdalene, saying, “Let not
your hearts be troubled, nor fear ye any thing, I will not leave
you desolate; I go, but will shortly return again to you, and
will remain always with you.” At length he bid them remove from
thence, and go to Mount Olivet, because from that place he would
ascend into heaven, in the presence of them all: saying this, he
disappeared.
His holy Mother, with the rest of the company, without any delay,
hastened to the said mount, about a mile distant from Jerusalem,
as he had appointed them, where our Lord again soon appeared to
them. Behold on this day we have two different apparitions of our
Lord. Thus being all together, our Lord embraced his holy Mother,
and she again embraced him in a most tender manner, taking leave of
each other. And the disciples, Mary Magdalene, and the rest falling
down to the ground, and weeping with tenderness, kissed his blessed
feet, and he, raising them up, embraced all his apostles most
lovingly.
Let us now, pious reader, diligently consider them, and devoutly
contemplate all that is here done; and amongst the rest, let us
behold the holy Fathers, who being there present though invisible,
joyfully admire, and inwardly praise the blessed Virgin, by whom
they received so great a benefit as their salvation. They behold
with pleasing admiration, the glorious champions, and leaders of
God’s hosts, the apostles, whom our Lord Jesus had chosen from
among all others, to conquer and subdue the world, and bring it
over to the belief of his holy doctrine.
At length, when the mysteries were all fulfilled and completed, our
Lord Jesus began gradually to raise himself up before them, and
to ascend by his own virtue and power into heaven. And then the
blessed Virgin, with the rest, fell down and devoutly worshipped
him. And our Lady said, “O my beloved, I beseech thee to be mindful
of me,” and with this she burst into tears, not being able to
refrain, when she reflected on his departure, yet was she full of
inward joy, to see her blessed Son thus gloriously ascend into
heaven. His disciples also, when they beheld him ascending, said,
“Thou knowest, O Lord, that we have renounced all things for thee,
wherefore, we beseech thee not to forget us, but be ever mindful
of us, for whom we have forsaken all.” Then our Lord lifting up
his hands, with serene and pleasing aspect, crowned with glory,
victoriously ascended into heaven, but first blessing them, he
said, “Be stedfast, and fight courageously, for I shall always be
with you, even to the end of the world.”
Thus, our Lord Jesus, ascended into heaven, fulfilling that which
the prophet Micah had said long before his ascension; _And their
King shall pass before them, and the Lord at the head of them_. So
that they all followed him with unspeakable joy, and never-ending
felicity.
And Michael, the prince of God’s celestial host, going before,
carried the joyful tidings of their Lord’s ascending, at which
the whole heavenly court of celestial spirits came forth to meet
their Lord, and with all worship and reverence, they led him with
hymns and songs of jubilation, repeating with inexpressible joy,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
Having paid their due reverence to the Lord, and ended the joyful
canticles, which related to his glorious Ascension, the angels
began to rejoice with each other. And what tongue can express,
or mind conceive, that which passed between them at this happy
meeting? The blessed spirits began to congratulate them on their
arrival, saying: “Ye princes of God’s people, you are welcome
to our eternal habitation, and we rejoice and are glad at your
arrival: you all are gathered together, and wonderfully exalted
with our God; Alleluia. Therefore rejoice and sing to him who so
gloriously ascended into heaven, and above the heaven of heavens:
Alleluia.”
To which the Fathers again joyfully replied, “To you, princes of
God’s people, Alleluia: Our guardians and helpers, Alleluia: Joy
and peace for ever, Alleluia: Let us sing and make mirth to our
King and our Saviour, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia. Now we joyfully
enter into the house of our Lord, Alleluia: to remain for ever in
the glorious city of God, Alleluia. As sheep of our Lord’s pasture
we enter his gates, Alleluia: With hymns and canticles, Alleluia:
For the Lord of power is with us, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.”
For according to the prophet, _The Lord is ascending in shouts of
joy, and the Lord in the sound of a trumpet_.
Our Lord Jesus ascended visibly for the greater comfort of his
mother and disciples, that they might see him as far as they could.
And behold a _cloud received him out of their sight_, and in an
instant they were present in heaven! And as the blessed Virgin and
the disciples were looking still up to heaven, two angels stood
beside them in white garments, who began to comfort them, telling
them not to look longer after his body, which they saw ascend so
gloriously into heaven, for that they should not see him any more
in that form till the day of Judgment, when he should come to judge
the quick and the dead. They bid them return into the city again,
and there to expect the coming of the Holy Ghost, as he himself had
told them. His blessed Mother spoke to the angels, desiring them
to recommend her to her blessed son; who profoundly inclining to
her, promised gladly to fulfil her commands. And the apostles and
Mary Magdalene recommended themselves in the same manner. After
this, the angels departing, they went according as they had been
appointed into the city, unto Mount Sion, and waited there the
coming of the Holy Ghost.
FINIS.
THE
WIFE OF BEITH:
BEING
AN ALLEGORICAL DIALOGUE.
CONTAINING
NOTHING BUT WHAT IS RECORDED IN SCRIPTURE.
[Illustration]
GLASGOW:
PRINTED FOR THE BOOKSELLERS.
THE WIFE OF BEITH.